


You're Gonna Wanna (Be My Best Friend)

by hopespym



Series: betty barnes (and her human) [3]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Betty Barnes is a Good Girl, Bucky Barnes Feels, Bucky Barnes Gets a Dog, Fluff, M/M, Pre-Slash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-05
Updated: 2019-05-09
Packaged: 2020-02-26 13:56:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,271
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18718432
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hopespym/pseuds/hopespym
Summary: “I’ll just meet a dog. One dog.”The grin that stretched across Steve’s face was enough to make Bucky feel like this was the right choice, then he saw him start to stand and had to suppress a groan.“Great! Let’s go!”He should have known that when Steve put his mind to things they happened as soon as he could help.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> As the past few fics have been it's 1:30 am and this hasn't been beta'd so all mistakes are my own.

**** “I don’t need a fucking dog, Steve.”

“Bucky, I seriously think this could be a good thing for you! If you would just at least give it a try, even if you just  _ meet _ a  _ potential _ dog. You never know what could happen!”

Huffing, Bucky slunk further into his seat. Steve had already pulled this trick before and it was how Bucky had met Tony Stark and then been set to get the metal arm that was currently in place of his left arm.

Already an argument that Bucky had feared they had had almost one too many times, he was starting to tire of it.

No doubt his best friend could already see his resolve breaking so he let out a sigh and pointed at the man sitting across from him, “If it will shut you up-”

“-It will!-”

“I’ll just  _ meet _ a dog. One dog.”

The grin that stretched across Steve’s face was enough to make Bucky feel like this was the right choice, then he saw him start to stand and had to suppress a groan.

“Great! Let’s go!”

He should have known that when Steve put his mind to things they happened as soon as he could help.

 

Fuck Steve.

Fuck his friends.

Fuck everything, but most of all, fuck himself for allowing him to be sucked in so easily.

Who was he kidding! He had no idea how to take care of himself, let alone a  _ dog. _

Sure, he had been a clear approvement for the programme with his struggling PTSD and other scars left from the war and his life in general. Him and the dog he had met had gotten along just fine in the sheltered rooms of the interview rooms, and then outside in the back yards.

The dog seemed content enough to follow Bucky’s instructions without second though after the first few meetings and at the last couple of meet ups that were there just to make  _ sure _ everything was perfect, she had trotted up to Bucky with all the excitement of a puppy and Bucky would be lying if he said his heart hadn’t absolutely melted.

Now though. Now they were in Bucky’s apartment. In  _ their _ apartment and shit, wasn’t that weird?

For the first time since before the war, Bucky wasn’t alone in his day to day life.

 

Bucky was definitely a man of routine.

Probably one of the only things he still liked about the army, looking back, was the routines of their day to day life - the days that weren’t so hectic and life threatening anyway. 

They’d go to a village, work on some chores around the show, help out wherever was needed and have strict times for waking, rests and going to sleep. After coming back from the army it had taken him a long while to establish a new one, what with all the setbacks that came with PTSD and his mindset.

In short, things just weren’t that great for him during that time in his life.

He overcame it though and set a steady routine, which he was more than grateful for on days when the sinking feeling came back and when he barely wanted to get out of bed.

He would work on autopilot though, and sure, sometimes he would miss things or forget to go places, but that was okay, mostly no one minded. Mostly.

Sometimes though, he had people coming and knocking on his door, forcing him to go places without a word when he first opened the doors, and sometimes they left, coming back the next day when the pounding on the door had reminded him of a sound and he had shrunk himself into a ball, barely remembering to breathe.

It was one of the days that the knocking seemed never ending, and all he could think was  _ no-I don’t want to get up-I’ll die if I get up and go out there-People die every day-This time I won’t be so lucky-I’ll die-I’ll die-I’ll die-I’ll- _

He heard a whine and his breath hitched as he stayed still. He wasn’t sure what was happening but next thing he was aware of nails clicking on the wooden floors and he took a shuddering breath as something sniffed him almost cautiously before there was another whine.

A furry body was soon pressing into his space and he let out a wet gasp,  _ since when was he crying? _ , before clutching onto the fur, trying to be gentle with it in his desperation.

Finding that stroking and patting the fur was a soothing moment, he nuzzled further, calming his breathing and trying to sort his mind and emotions.

The knocking had long stopped and he couldn’t be more thankful.

As he sat against the wall, tear marks still on his face and a hiccup with every couple of breaths he thought that maybe having a dog wasn’t so bad.

 

Bucky always felt like he never got enough sleep. So what if it was because he hardly ever did? 

It wasn’t always nightmares that kept him up though. Sometimes it was the paranoia that had made its home in him years ago.  _ If he slept, who was he to know that he wouldn’t just wake up back in the barracks? That he wouldn’t just wake up in that damn hospital bed all over again? _

He knew that Steve was exactly like him in that regard, so sometimes they would get together, hang out, watch some shit tv. Or maybe they would just lay in bed together, being thankful that they had each others company.

Steve was actually sleeping though, and even while Bucky knew Steve really wouldn’t mind being woken up to spend a sleepless night with him, it just didn’t feel right.

Betty was sleeping on the floor beside his bed and though Bucky felt a pang of guilt, he wasn’t sure whether or not she was allowed to sleep on the bed with him.

Of course, he was the one that made the rules, but there was something niggling in the back of his mind that told him she wasn’t meant to. 

With a sigh he got up, careful to be extra quiet when leaving the room. Much like him, Betty seemed to have better hearing than most dogs so it was a chore to leave the room, but he managed to collapse on the couch with a sigh a moment later.

He turned the tv on and allowed it to turn his brain into more mush than it already was and settled in to watch whatever crap infomercials were on.

 

If he woke up later with Betty cuddled on his lap, well. That wasn’t his fault, was it?

 

Something that didn’t take too long for Bucky to find out was that Betty wanted absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with thunder.

He had known the bad weather was approaching for a couple of days now and had thought that things would be fine, but when the first few rolls of thunder sounded throughout his apartment he found himself feeling distressed at the whimpers he was hearing.

“Hey. Hey doll, you’re alright.” 

Another distressed whine came from under the sheets and he couldn’t help but grin when a black snout came out from under the covers, a huff accompanying.

Sure. It was completely possible that he had become a giant softie for his girl and sure, Steve could shove it because he was perfectly aware of what a pushover he was. 

“Yeah, there you are, beautiful. Scared of the thunder, huh?,” Just as he finished the word, another belt through the sky, though it was accompanied by lightning this time (not that she seemed to like that any more), “That’s okay, you’re alright girl. Come here, you’re safe.”

He let out a laugh when he was suddenly covered by a blanket of dog fur. Blinking himself more awake he started to scratch at Betty’s ears, making soothing noises and trying to comfort her. She seemed to settle more and nuzzle closer to Bucky, going as far to give Bucky’s cheek a lick before settling with her head on his shoulder.

Bucky hummed contently, moving to scratch on top of her head as he closed his eyes, scratching a little bit more firmly whenever she whimpered from the thunder.

Most of the night was spent like that, him drifting in and out between consciousness and trying to calm his girl, let her know she was safe.

After all that she did for him, it was the least that he could do for her.

 

“Your dog is an absolute mutt.”

Clint heaved himself up to look at Bucky over the couch from where he was lounging, raising an eyebrow. Bucky rolled his eyes and shut the door as the two dogs went racing around the apartment, still hyped from their walk.

Usually he didn’t take Lucky with him, but dog hadn’t left him alone when he was getting Betty ready for her walk so he had shrugged and clipped him onto the leash as well.

“What’d he do?”

“Much like his owner, he just can’t seem to keep out of dumpsters.”

Freezing momentarily from where Lucky was licking all over his face, Clint let out a reluctant sigh and resumed patting the dog. A resigned sort of squeak escaping him when the dog seemed to get too close with one, which ending up with him being shoved away lightly as Clint had a disgruntled look on his face.

Bucky let out a huff of laughter and joined Clint on the couch.

“You’re looking better.” Clint looked up at him with an indulging smile. Him and Nat had just gotten back from a mission not that long ago and the archer really hadn’t looked that good when he had gotten back, but Bucky hadn’t asked - no matter how worried he had been.

“And you said I shouldn’t have skipped medical, see, Buck! I can take care of myself!”

Rolling his eyes and snatched the remote off of the coffee table and started flipping through different channels, ignoring the disappointed noise the other man made, “Think that has more to do with Nat forcing you to sit still so she could fix you up than anything else.”

“Yeah she is the best.”

Humming as he clicked on some cooking show, he didn’t even bother to move when Clint leaned to rest on him, letting out a sigh, “You’re almost better though.”

Bucky couldn’t help the bark of laughter that escaped him and he patted Betty’s head with a grin stuck on his face as he settled back into the couch, getting more comfortable and draping his arm over Clint’s shoulders, “That’s good to know. It’s always good to know your competition.”

 

**Bucky:** mastered the art of a highfive!

**Bucky** _ sent a video to the group _

**Steve:** Bucky, you leave for a mission in 5 minutes.

**Bucky:** it’s called multi-tasking

**Bucky:** say something nice about her new skill, you’re making her sad

**Nat:** i’m proud of her. she is a good dog.

**Bucky:** she’s the  _ best _ dog. 

**Clint:** aw, you should teach lucky something sometime

**Bucky:** no talking of trash dogs here, only good girls

**Steve:** Buck, Maria’s waiting for you. 

**Nat:** yes, clint. only good girls.

**Nat:** that’s why you always get invited again when you get kicked out.

**Bucky:** i never claimed to be a fair leader.

**Steve:** She said she’s going to leave without you.

**Bucky:** yes, father! tell her i’m a minute out since you two are so close.

 

“Hey, baby girl! Daddy missed you! Yes he did!” 

A warmth spread over Bucky as he crouched down and hugged Betty close to him. The mission had gone a couple of days longer than he assumed it would have and he had missed having a dog hogging half of his bed and still wanting more room.

He pressed a kiss to her forehead and looked up to see Steve with his phone out, angling it towards Bucky and Betty. He felt his phone vibrating in his pocket and pulled it out, opening the group conversation with a swipe.

**Steve:** Reunited pair. You’d think it was longer than 5 days.

**Nat:** just because he didn’t remember you after 70 years.

**Clint:** yeah, no need to have hard feelings, Cap.

**Clint** _took a screenshot of the conversation_

**Nat:** ?

**Clint:** blackmail.

Bucky rolled his eyes as he tucked his phone back away, turning it off vibrate and giving Betty another kiss on the forehead before pulling out a dog toy he had managed to swipe for her on his way back.

She trotted over to Steve with the toy rabbit in her mouth and Bucky couldn’t imagine his life without this dog in his life and right now he had never been more thankful for Steve forcing this upon him.

 

Later when Steve had left and Betty was napping with her head curled over his knee he pulled out his phone again, this time seeing a message from Clint that was three days old.  

**Clint:** bett misses u!

**Clint** _ sent a photo to the conversation _

**Bucky** _ took a screenshot of the conversation _

**Bucky** _ is typing _

**Bucky:** ur on thin fucking ice Barton

 

If Bucky’s lockscreen not even a moment later became the picture Clint had sent to the groupchat of him, Lucky and Betty all together and him smiling like the fucking sun, then only Bucky had to know.


	2. Art

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter just shows some art done by my lovely co-creator of this universe! I've been quite slack with replying to comments due to my university life but from the bottom of mine and @/awstark's hearts thank you so much for the support <3

**Bucky and Betty**

**Lucky, Clint and Betty as the picture that Bucky makes his lockscreen**

****

 

Tumblr links: 

<https://awstark.tumblr.com/post/184675069055/me-and-maximoffwandas-started-to-talk-about>

<https://awstark.tumblr.com/post/184742936290/a-snippet-from-mine-and-maximoffwandas-winterhawk>

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> any ideas for this au, feel free to let us know on tumblr!  
> @maximoffswanda & @awstark

**Author's Note:**

> let me know what you thought!
> 
> tumblr: @maximoffwandas


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